Madelaine Zaleski, Oyster Bay High School's valedictorian, is off to the University of Pennsylvania to study physics. Photo Credit: Handout

Madelaine Zaleski, Oyster Bay High School's valedictorian, is off to the University of Pennsylvania to study physics. (Credit: Handout)

Ever wonder where Long Island’s top high school grads are choosing to go to school? We have -- so we created an interactive map pin-pointing where 144 of LI’s 2011 valedictorians will spend their freshman year this fall. (See map below.) (There are 146 total valedictorians from LI's high schools -- but two were undecided when we talked to them about their plans.) Our mapping experiment yielded...

(There are 146 total valedictorians from LI's high schools -- but two were undecided when we talked to them about their plans.)

Our mapping experiment yielded some interesting results. For example, only a handful of valedictorians chose to continue their education on Long Island, but most won't journey much farther from home -- just 10 valedictorians of the 146 are outside of the New England and Mid-Atlantic areas.

Manhasset High School's Raymond Luong can look forward to earning the most frequent flyer miles, as he's traveling the furthest and going to Stanford University in California.

More than 30 percent of LI's valedictorians will be attending the ivy-tinged campuses of the Northeast, with Harvard University being one hotspot. Eight of the valedictorians are headed there, compared with five going to Yale and three to Princeton.